October, 2013 Obama Care Disaster Update, Part 4: The Anguish Hits American Families

Obama Care will go down as the greatest failure of Barack Obama, a President with many failed policies. The evidence is overwhelming and has been covered often over the past three years in this blog: 

1. Avid, original supporters of Obama Care, the unions, now realize what a disaster it will be for its members and want out of it altogether.
2. It’s runaway costs and failure to resolve the root causes of high health care costs in this country will add trillions of dollars to the national debt without taming health care costs.
3. The original cost estimate of implementing the legislation is now more than three times higher just three years after the law was enacted.
4. Obama Care’s business model and structure will cause the least wealthy in our society, the younger generation, to subsidize the most wealthy in our society, the Baby Boomer generation.
5. The law is causing health insurance premiums to skyrocket for just about everyone vs. what is available today in the individual insurance market.
6. Senator Max Baucus, an avid and original supporter of Obama Care, correctly called the whole legislation a “train wreck” many months ago, even before the latest screw ups occurred.
7. The Congressional Budget Office officially predicts that up to 7 million Americans will LOSE their current health insurance as a result of Obama Care, the exact opposite of what it was supposed to do.
8. The legislation is causing the nation to become a nation of part time workers as businesses cannot afford the penalties required in the legislation for full time workers.
9. Doctors are retiring earlier than expected because of the many hassles of the legislation, putting more cost and access pressure on the health care industry in this country vs. what would have happened in the absence of this legislation.
10. People are losing access to their current insurance options and are losing access to their current doctors and hospitals as a result of Obama Care.
11. The rollout of the Obama Care online health insurance exchanges is nothing but an unmitigated disaster.
12. The data systems support for the legislation has correctly been called an identity thief’s paradise.
13. Training for people who will support the health insurance exchanges has been inadequate and has involved hiring people without doing criminal background checks on them before allowing them to access Americans’ private information (see identity thief paradise in previous bullet.)
14. The law is so bad, that poltiicians in Washingotn want to break the law and exempt themselves and their staff members form certain aspects of the law.

And the most depressing part of this whole fiasco is that Obama Care hasn’t even been fully implemented yet. Many parts of it have been delayed into the future.

But these are all general findings. As bad as these bullet point findings are and how they prove beyond a doubt that this was the worst piece of legislation ever passed by Washington, they do not touch on the human aspect and wreckage that this legislation is raining down on Americans. Lost insurance coverage, lost hours as they are forced to become part time workers, and lost jobs are hitting American families hard.

To give you an idea of how hard, consider the following list of businesses, schools, and other organizations that have had to cut their workers’ hours in order to stay financially viable and comply with the idiotic regulations of Obama Care.  Investors Business Daily published a document with over 300 employers who have cut hours because of Obama Care, a list that was published BEFORE the current rollout disaster sprung up over the past few weeks. (Note: the list does not include businesses that have stopped hiring or have put off expansion of their businesses as a result of Obama Care, i.e. the carnage is worse than just what has happened to the following companies).

As you go through this list, think about the hundreds of thousands of Americans that have already been negatively impacted by just these 313 companies’ reactions to the draconian tenets of Obama Care:

Houston County
Biola University
Bealls Inc. (Department Stores)
SeaWorld Entertainment
Palmer Place Restaurant
Salina Family YMCA
Middletown Township Public Schools
Sam Houston State University
Auburn Hills
Friendship Community (group home for adults with disabilities)
Meridian Public Schools
Michael Monti’s La Casa Vieja steakhouse
Hollywood Casino
Arizona State University
Mainesubway (Subway franchisee)
Finger Lakes Community College
Tsunami Surf Shops
Southern Illinois University
Vincennes
Mexican American Opportunity Foundation
Georgia Military College
Vcm Inc. (Subway franchisee)
Ball State University
Tom’s River
Forsyth Technical Community College
Wilkes Community College
Consolidated Restaurant Operations Inc
Dave & Buster’s
Philadelphia University
K-VA-T Food Stores
Three Rivers College
Bergen Community College
University of Alabama
Brevard County
Buca di Beppo restaurant chain
Hillsborough Community College
St. Petersburg College
Cherokee County School Board
Hancock County
Morgan County
Central Michigan University
NEMF trucking company
Henderson
White Castle
Shari’s restaurants
Carnegie Museum
Oneida Special School District
Scott County School System
Stewart County School System
Jim’s Restaurants
Christoper Savvides restaurant & catering co.
Minocqua-Hazelhurst-Lake Tomahawk School District
Trig’s Supermarkets
University of North Alabama
Fatburger
Lee County
Delta County
Bee County
Boundary County
Rutherford County
Lawrence County
Kenowa Hills Public Schools
City of Burlington Public Schools
Lion & Rose British Restaurant and Pub
MTC Inc. restaurant management
Millard School District
Pulaski Technical College
San Diego Community College District
Drury University
Cumberland University
Area Agency on Aging of Western Arkansas, Inc.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
CKE Restaurants Inc.
Kern County
Rancho Cucamonga
San Gabriel
Palm Beach State College
Santa Fe College
Tallahassee Community College
Parkland College
Clay County
DeKalb County
Eastbrook Community Schools
Floyd County
Highland
Indiana University
Ivy Tech Community College
Kosciusko County
Lakeview Christian School
Madison Consolidated Schools
Madison-Grant United School Corp.
Marshall County
Mississinewa Community Schools
Perry Central School Corp.
Shelbyville Central School System
Speedway Schools
Starke County
Wolfe’s Auto Auction
Spencer Community School District
Lexington Board of Education
Howard Community College
Russ’ Restaurant
Maritz Research
Blair Community Schools
Plattsmouth Board of Education
Little Falls Board of Education
Lake Township
Lebanon City
Mason
Scrambler Marie’s Restaurants
Westlake
East Penn School District
Southern Lehigh School District
Tredyffrin-Easttown School District
Kelly Professional Cleaning Services
Spartanburg Community College
Matagorda County
Wilson County
Murray School District
Nebo School District
Henrico Country School District
Lynchburg
Clyde’s Restaurant Group
Eminence Community Schools
Faribault
Martin County
Baldwin Public Library
Hayfield Community Schools
Rappahannock Area Community Services Board
Benton Community Schools
Pompton Lakes Board of Education
Sparta Area Schools
Brandywine Heights Area School District
Southern Utah Unversity
Arkansas State University
Texas Christian University
Maricopa Community Colleges
University of Arizona in Tucson
Long Beach
Circle K Southeast
College of DuPage
McHenry County College
Eastern Hancock School Board
Fayette County School Corp.
Fort Wayne Community Schools
Gibson County
Greencastle Community Schools
Hancock Madison Shelby Educational Services
Tipton County
Vigo County School Corp.
White River Valley School District
Zionsville Community Schools
Indianola Community School District
Tama County
Kansas Turnpike Authority
Republic Foods (Burger King franchise operator)
Birmingham
Dearborn
Iosco County
Tuscola County
Douglas County West Community Schools
Papillion-La Vista school district
Westside Community Schools
Carlie C’s
Sinclair Community College
Tipp City
Ephrata Area School District
Dallas County Community College District
Plano
Alpine School District
Deseret Industries (work training for war refugees)
Wise County School Board
Mount Horeb Area School District
Tehama County
Crawford County
Vanderburgh County
Campbell County Social Services Dept.
Dickenson County Public Schools
Grayson County
Strasburg
Wythe County
North Putnam Community Schools
Northwestern School Corp.
Taylor Community Schools
Hanover Township
Middletown Township
Cedar City
Dallas School District
New Mexico State University
General McLane School District
Blue Ridge Community And Technical College
Fountain Fire Dept.
North of the River Recreation and Park District
Charco Broiler
Durango
Mountain Del (Del Taco franchisee)
Daytona State College
Moraine Valley Community College
Bartholomew County
Delaware County
Northwestern Consolidated School District
Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corp.
Clear Lake School Board
Ocean City
Kalamazoo Valley Community College
St. Clair Community College
Moberly Area Community College
Ralston School District
Springfield Platteview Community Schools
Community College System of New Hampshire
Franklin Township Board of Education
Waldbaum’s Supermarket
Cuyahoga Community College
University of Akron
Upper Arlington City School District
Firstaff Nursing Services Inc.
Lancaster County School District
Penn Manor School District
Susquenita School District
Regal Entertainment Group
Brigham Young University
Chesterfield Public Schools
Chippewa County
Tazewell County
Eastern Greene Schools
Portage
Vassar Public Schools
Richmond Public Schools
Spotsylvania County
Joe Bologna’s Italian Pizzeria & Restaurant
Clinton-Glen Gardner School District
Elmhurst College
Columbus State Community College
AAA Parking
Boone Community School District
Joliet Junior College
Van Buren Township
Mankato
Hudson Valley Community College
Five Guys Burgers and Fries franchise
Akron
Baldwin-Wallace University
Kent State University
Lakeland Community College
Youngstown City Schools
Lori’s Angels home care
Granite School District
Chesterfield County
Louisa County
Bowling Green State University
Medina City Schools
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Fairview Park
Shawnee State University
Miami Dade College
Putnam County
Cutchall Management restaurant company
Mount Ephraim Board of Education
CY Farms
Brunswick
Medina
Wytheville Town Council
Christopher Newport University
College of William & Mary
Norfolk State University
Virginia government (all other departments)
Virginia Commonwealth University
Virginia Community College System
Virginia Dept. of Alcoholic Beverage Control
Virginia Dept. of Conservation and Recreation
Virginia Employment Commission
Washington County
Wytheville
Land’s End
Dept. of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services
Dept. of Motor Vehicles
George Mason University
James Madison University
Longwood University
Old Dominion University
Radford University
University of Mary Washington
Lomira School District
Lancaster County
Utah Valley University
Columbus
Illinois Valley Community College
Milford Township
New Baltimore
Omega Foods Inc. (Wendy’s franchisee)
Tallmadge
Treadwell Enterprises (Taco Bell franchise operator)
Lake County
Boca Raton
Rock Valley College
Royal Farms convenience stores
Fairlawn
Chesapeake College
Sugarcreek Township
RREMC Restaurants (Denny’s franchisee)
Cedar Falls
Kga Group (Subway franchisee)
Kean University
Stark State College
Youngstown State University
Community College of Allegheny County
Pillar Hotels & Resorts
PMTD Restaurants LLC (a franchisee of KFC)
Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches
Plainfield Park District
Bowlmor Lanes
West Perry School District
Lafayette School Corp.

All of this unnecessary anguish and hardship all because of a piece of legislation that was not well thought out, was rushed through enactment without proper vetting and analysis, and that has no chance of ever being successful because it fails miserably to address the root causes of our ever rising health care costs in this country. 

313 companies, schools, and other organizations already slammed, hundreds of thousands of Americans, if not millions of Americans, already slammed, with more anguish yet to come.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:

www.loathemygovernment.com

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.

Please visit the following sites for freedom:

Term Limits Now:http://www.howmuchworsecoulditget.com
http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
http://www.robertringer.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w

Part 6, August, 2013 Obama Care Update: Main Stream Media Finally Recognizes the Disaster, Major Unfinished Operational Tasks, and More

Okay, apologies up front. Over the past six days we have been examining and reviewing the many disasters and fiascoes that were spawned as a result of Obama Care. One would have thought six days would have been enough.

We reviewed the long list of root causes underlying our high health care costs and how Obama Care addresses almost none of them.

We reviewed how Obama Care is causing American workers to lose salary hours, reducing their take home pay.

We reviewed how Obama Care is causing business owners to pull back on hiring and business expansion, stunting overall economic growth in the country.

We  reviewed how the  underlying systems to support the rollout of some major components of Obama Care are far behind schedule and are likely to not be ready when scheduled.

We reviewed how the inadequate training of Obama Care “navigators” and the inadequate data systems security protocols will turn Obama Care’s processes into an identity thief’s paradise.

We reviewed how seven million Americans, per the Congressional Budget Office,  are likely to lose access to their current health care insurance programs, the exact opposite of what Obama Care was supposed to do.

We reviewed how Americans are likely to experience severe sticker price shock when they see how substantially higher their health care premiums are going to be under Obama Care.

We reviewed how smaller hospitals are likely to see severe economic days as Obama Care raped the Medicaid and Medicare budgets to fund its own processes.

We reviewed how every reputable opinion poll over the past few weeks has shown that the majority or at least plurality of Americans see Obama Care as a bad thing, respondents think that they will end paying more for health insurance, and are scared about losing their current health insurance options.

We reviewed how Obama and other politicians are illegally changing aspects of the legislation without going back through the proper legislative Congressional approval of those changes.

And after all of this review, we still have not covered all of the problems, given the new problems that have arisen just in the past week or so. Rather than wait until next month when we do another set of reviews, we thought it was important to get the following insanity out there for your review and depression:

1) The family of NBC news outlets have always been the most biased in their reporting when it comes to Barack Obama. They often come off as just another arm of the President’s public relations department. Thus, when someone like NBC News airs a news segment that is critical of Obama Care you know that it must be a bad piece of legislation. Consider the following quotes taken directly from the broadcast of such a piece on August 13, 2013:

• The NBC Nightly News segment concluded that there would be adverse impacts of Obama Care on the people it intends to help, leaving some “with no insurance and a pay cut.”
• Lisa Myers, a reporter involved in the segment, stated that NBC News “spoke to almost 20 small businesses and other entities around the country. Almost all said because of the new law, they’d be cutting back hours for some employees.” 
• Additionally, a top union head told NBC News:”Wait a year, and you’ll see a tremendous impact as workers have their hours reduced and their incomes reduced.”

So, NBC News has found that Americans, small businesses, and unions do not like and fear Obama Care. These are the entities that are most likely to be impacted by the legislation so someone in Washington should be heeding their opinions before this disaster hit’s the proverbial fan.

2) Unfortunately, it appears that many people in the Obama administration are NOT heeding these opinions. In the same NBC News segment, Jason Furman, who is a  top economic adviser to President Obama, said that he “sees no systematic evidence” that the health-care law is “having an adverse impact on the number of hours people are working.

No disrespect to Mr. Fruman, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt and say that this administration made him deny the reality that has been in the news, and reported in this blog, for at least the past two years. We have discussed the many businesses and government entities that have issued press releases or held news conferences announcing how they were cutting workers hours and cutting the number of jobs they could be filling all because of Obama Care.

To not be aware of these realities is very scary. It shows an administration that is either very out of touch with reality, does not want to know about reality, thinks that they can lie about reality, or really does not care what is happening to American workers. In any case, their actions are irresponsible and despicable.

3) Previously, we had discussed the fact that legal cases against Obama Care were moving forward and that many of them, according to experts, had merit and a real chance of succeeding. One of the suits, filed by the Oklahoma attorney general, made it through a major milestone this week when that attorney general, Scott Pruitt announced: “The court rejected the federal government’s argument that Oklahoma lacked standing to challenge the law, allowing us to proceed with this pivotal case. We’re optimistic the court will recognize what states have known for months that the IRS disregarded the law by making the large employer mandate effective in Oklahoma or in any of the 33 other states without a state health care exchange.”

Apparently, the legislation, as written and enacted, does not allow the Federal government to force itself, its tenets, and the IRS onto the 34 states that have rejected setting up their own Obama Care health insurance exchanges. The Supreme Court decision that said Obama care was legal also gave the states the right to opt out of the exchange process. Obama knows that if 34 states are not included in the overall Obama Care effort, the financials and momentum of the legislation collapses, which would be good news for America, bad news for Obama. The first step towards the potentially good outcome is in the books.

4) The American Action Forum website recently published a pictorial representation of what has to be done in the next 50 days to make Obama Care operational. Remember, these people have had three years to get ready for this major October 1, 2013 rollout. 

According to the website, fifty major tasks have to miraculously come together in just 50 days for this monstrosity to have any chance of working. Take a look for yourself of what still has to be done and ask honestly yourself if this is not truly a “train wreck” (Senator Max Baucus’s words) ready to implode (double click picture for a larger view):


5) Consider the following articles that major news outlets have written over the past year or so and then decide if this fiasco has any chance of reducing costs, expanding coverage, or actually working, three years after they started working on its rollout:

• U.S. schools face tough decisions on Obamacare benefits - Reuters, August 14 
• A Limit on Consumer Costs Is Delayed in Health Care Law - New York Times, August 12
• Congress wins relief on Obamacare health plan subsidies - Reuters, August 7 
• In the Affordable Care Act, Some Children Left Behind - New York Times, August 7 
• Obamacare months behind in testing IT data security: government - Reuters, August 6 
• Obamacare's Challenge: a Skeptical Public - Wall Street Journal, August 5 
• Concord: Half of Affordable Care Act call center jobs will be part-time - Contra Costa Times, July 25 
• Marketing ‘Obamacare’ Shaping Up As Big Challenge - Associated Press, July 24 
• Shutdown looms over ObamaCare - The Hill, July 23 
• Obama asks Hollywood celebrities to help pitch ObamaCare enrollment - The Hill, July 23 
• Doctors are skeptical and confused about ObamaCare, survey Finds - CNBC, July 22 
• Obama extols health care law amid public doubts - July 18, Associated Press 
• More Restaurants Replace Full-Timers, Concerned About Insurance - The Wall Street Journal, July 14 
• Union Letter: Obamacare Will ‘Destroy The Very Health and Wellbeing’ of Workers - The Wall Street Journal, July 12 
• White House Has Known For Months ObamaCare Implementation Wouldn't Work - National Journal, July 9 
• Health insurance marketplaces will not be required to verify consumer claims - Washington Post, July 5 
• Delay Stirs Broader Worries About Obama Health Law  Associated Press, July 3 
• U.S. to delay key health-reform provision to 2015 - Reuters, July 2 
• A big Medicaid gap looms in Obama health care law - Associated Press, July 1 
• NFL says no to promoting ObamaCare - Washington Post, June 28 
• White House recruiting Hollywood stars for ObamaCare rollout - The Hill, June 25 
• Newly insured to deepen primary care doctor gap - Associated Press, June 22 
• Coverage may be unaffordable for low-wage workers - Associated Press, June 13 
• Like your health care? You May Be Losing It - Associated Press, May 29 
• Some unions now angry about health care overhaul - Associated Press, May 24 
• UnitedHealth, Aetna and Cigna opt out of California insurance exchange - Los Angeles Times, May 22 
• Employers Eye Bare-Bones Health Plans Under New Law - The Wall Street Journal, May 19 
• Half of U.S. Small Businesses Think Health Law Bad for Them - Gallup, May 10 
• Part-timers to lose pay amid health act's new math - Los Angeles Times, May 2 
• Obama's Legacy: A Health Care Law That Hurts His Party - National Journal, May 2 
• Reid: More funding needed to prevent ObamaCare from becoming 'train wreck' - The Hill, May 1
• Botched ObamaCare rollout tops Democratic fears for 2014 election - The Hill, May 1
• Democrats fret over ObamaCare as 2014 looms - Politico, April 30 
• Lawmakers, aides may get ObamaCare exemption - Politico, April 24 
• Baucus warns of 'huge train wreck' enacting ObamaCare provisions - The Hill, April 17 
• ObamaCare Incompetence - Time Magazine, April 2 

• Small Firms’ Offer of Plan Choices Under Health Law Delayed - The New York Times, April 1 
• Kathleen Sebelius: ObamaCare Implementation May Cause Some Health Care Costs To Rise -Reuters, March 26 
• Study: Health overhaul to raise claims cost 32 pct - Associated Press, March 26 
• Senate backs symbolic repeal of medical device tax - Reuters, March 22 
• Beige Book Says ObamaCare Is Costing Jobs and Sales - CNBC, March 6 

Consider some of the words that the mainstream press are using to describe what is happening: train wreck, costing jobs, delays, costs to rise, fret, fears, angry, unaffordable, destroy, skeptical, confused, etc. Even if you do not believe me, check out some of these articles to find others’ pessimistic outlooks on how bad this legislation is going to be. Apparently everyone sees the train wreck coming but those that work in the White House and this administration.

That’s enough for today. But tomorrow is another day where I promise it will be the end of the bad news from Obama Care… for this month.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:

www.loathemygovernment.com

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.

Please visit the following sites for freedom:

Term Limits Now: http://www.howmuchworsecoulditget.com
http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
http://www.robertringer.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08j0sYUOb5w 

Part 1, August, 2013 Obama Care Update: Higher Insurance Rates, Less Competition, More Disgust with the Law

It has been about a month since we talked about the disaster that is Obama Care. That is not because the disaster has not continued to unfold. We will need a few posts, at least, this month to get up to date with how this horrid piece of legislation is falling apart in front of our faces and the collateral damage it is doing to American families, the economy, and our freedom.

In no particular order, rhyme or reason, the disaster that is Obama Care:

1) Remember how the President promised that if you liked your current health care insurance and your current doctors you could keep them under Obama Care? We have previously reported on how the Congressional Budget Office has officially estimated that seven million Americans will lose access to their current health care insurance plans and doctors, Obama’s promise not withstanding.

In an August 6, 2913 article on their website, the Heritage Foundation illustrated why this is happening from a real American family’s perspective. In Indianapolis, married couple Rod Coons and Florence Peace were happy and satisfied with their current health insurance coverage: “I’d prefer to stay with our current plan because it meets our needs.”

But their happiness is going to have to take a back seat to what Obama Care will dictate for their lives.  Their current insurance won’t qualify as “government-approved” coverage under Obama Care, meaning they will have to find different coverage if they do not want be considered criminals under Obama Care’s tenets and restrictions.

You see, their current plan has a $10,000 deductible, a fact that the couple are happy with.: “I’m only really interested in catastrophic coverage” in the event of a medical emergency like a heart attack or cancer. But Obama thinks he knows what is best for them, not what they think is best for them. 

By invalidating what had been a valid health care insurance option for this family, Obama Care will now force them to change health insurance plans to meet the laws’ mandate to purchase health insurance, as defined by the Washington political class. How does that happen in a free country?

2) Major components of Obama Care are supposed to start rolling out for implementation within the next 60 days. The administration has had years to get ready and to educate Americans on the benefits of Obama Care. How good of a job have they done, with less than two months to go to a major rollout of the law’s processes? Not well, if you believe a recent poll conducted by the Wall Street Journal and NBC, as discussed in an August 5, 2013 posting on the Journal’s website:

• 47% of Americans say the law overhauling the nation's health system is a bad idea, compared with 34% who call it a good idea.
• More than half of working-class whites say it is a bad idea. 
• What is really amazing,  48% of those Americans currently without health insurance, the Americans most likely to gain something from the law and the reason the law was enacted in the first place, also said that Obama Care is a bad idea. 
• By a 30-point spread, political independents think they will be worse off under the law than previously.
• Only about six in 10 liberals and a similar share of Democrats said the law was a good idea and that support has even dropped slightly in the past month. 
• Just 30% of those making less than $30,000 a year, and 37% of young adults, call the law a good idea. That's a weak showing among two core Obama constituencies.
• Suburban women, a key voting bloc for both parties, say, by 43% to 13%, that they will be worse off under the new law. 
• Political independents say the same by a similar count of 42% to 12%.

We have always maintained and shown how poor this legislation is and it seems most of America believes the same thing. If these feelings and beliefs cannot be turned around with 60 days or so, the rollout of Obama Care processes will be met with a big yawn or outright repulsion and avoidance. 

What happens if Obama Care shows up but no Americans do? It is likely to die from its own weight because for this monstrosity to work, everyone has to go out and buy overpriced and under featured Obama Care health insurance policies and that is not going to happen if current opposition to the law stays where it is today. 

If Obama has not been able to sell this in the YEARS leading up to this point, I doubt he can sell it in the next few MONTHS. A quote from the article from Democratic pollster Peter Hart best sums up President Obama's health-law predicament this way: "He signed it, but he never sold it."

3) A July 23, 2013 article from the Washington Post looked at a different poll but basically came up with the same results:

• Soon after Obama Care was passed in 2010, 74% of moderate and conservative Democrats supported the new legislation.
• However, now, only 46%  of these same people support the law.
• This level of dissatisfaction is down 11 points in the past year. 
• Liberal Democrats, by contrast, have continued to support the law at very high levels – 78% in the latest survey.
• Overall, 42% of Americans support and 49% oppose the law, a substantial difference from an even split at 47% apiece last July

Different survey, different source, same results: the majority of Americans correctly understand that this is one lousy piece of legislation.

4) One last poll finding. In late July, a CBS survey poll found that only 13% of those polled think Obama Care will help them, and almost three times that number, 38%, think the law will hurt them. Are we seeing a trend here? America does not like or want Obama Care. 

5) On August 5, 2013, Aetna, one of the country’s largest health insurance companies, announced it was withdrawing from Maryland’s new health insurance exchange under Obama Care due to insurance policy rate cuts. Obama Care would have required Aetna to drop its monthly health insurance premium that it charges its customers under the Obama Care exchanges by 29%, from $394 to $281 a month.

In a letter to Maryland Insurance Commissioner Therese M. Goldsmith, Aetna said that the plan “would not allow us to collect enough premiums to cover the cost of the plans.” Additionally, Aetna issued the following statement relative to its pulling out of Maryland’s Obama Care health insurance exchanges: “This is not a step that we take lightly. We believe it is critical that our plans not only be competitive, but also financially viable, allowing Aetna and Coventry [an Aetna subsidiary] to meet the long-term needs of the Exchanges in which we choose to participate.”

Aetna has also dropped out of the exchanges in California and Georgia, presumably for the same reasons: Obama Care’s rules and tenets are not financially reasonable or viable. Thus, what was supposed to be a highly competitive marketplace for health care insurance plans, through the exchanges, probably just a got a whole lot less competitive and fewer options for Maryland residents if and when any resident tries to get health insurance coverage through the Maryland exchange.

This is a perfect example of what we have been saying from day one. Obama Care never addressed the underlying, root causes and drivers of our escalating high health care costs. It tried to solve a health care cost issue with a Rube Goldberg-like health care insurance approach which never attacked the real reasons why our costs are so high. 

With the root causes not addressed and resolved, high health care costs will continue to get higher and higher, and cause companies like Aetna to look for other ways to remain financially viable. In the mean time, Americans will increasingly not be able to afford health care insurance because those underlying drivers are still driving up costs.

6) The Savannah Morning news reported on July 31, 2013 that Georgia may not start its Obama Care health exchange October 1 along the rest of the country. Apparently, the state submitted an emergency request to the Obama administration to delay its rollout of its Obama Care exchanges for one month.

Why the request for the delay? Georgia Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens asked U.S. Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for another 30 days beyond the deadline to approve the health plans submitted by seven insurance companies wanting to do business in the state‘s Obama Care exchanges because some of those insurance premium rates were 198% higher than current plans available in the state: “Georgia consumers cannot afford these massive rate increases,” Hudgens wrote in his letter to Sebelius.

A whopping 198% increase over pre-Obama Care’s rollout? Who would have thought? The real problem Georgia has, according to the article, is that independent actuaries have done their specialized analysis and found that six of the seven requests for substantial premium increases is justified under Obama Care guidelines. The seventh company is only 11% higher than what is justified, nowhere close to 198% higher. 

Another example of reality being just the opposite of what Obama, Reid, and Pelosi promised when Obama Care legislation was enacted. All across the nation, anyone getting close to implementing Obama Care exchanges are finding that insurance premiums will go up significantly rather than the promised drop in rate levels. What a train wreck, to quote Democratic Senator Max Baucus.

The Obama Care disasters will continue tomorrow. Increased prices, loss of current insurance plans, less competition, this legislation got it wrong on EVERYTHING.

Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at:

www.loathemygovernment.com

It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.

Please visit the following sites for freedom:

Term Limits Now: http://www.howmuchworsecoulditget.com
http://www.reason.com
http://www.cato.org
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May, 2013 Obama Care Update, Part 6: Neener/Neener I told You So and More Bad News

This is the sixth in a series of posts that are reviewing the current situation relative to Obama Care. It has not been a pleasant journey through the first five posts, with the identification of skyrocketing legislation costs, past supporters of the legislation finally realizing what a disaster this law is, a growing and likely ineffective government bureaucracy to administer this fiasco, and the fact that the law will never come close to attaining its objectives, probably making things worse in the country’s health care industry.

Today’s post fails to wrap up these saddening current events since even this sixth post will not be enough to cover how poorly constructed, poorly financed, and poorly implemented this legislation is becoming.

1) We have already discussed the crumbling financials of Obama Care in detail. We reviewed how the original estimated cost of the law has already doubled. How government experts themselves now estimate that the legislation will add trillions of dollars to our national debt. And most importantly, how it now looks like the cost of health care for American citizens and American businesses will rise even more dramatically, the exact opposite of what the legislation and its supporters claimed would happen.

But let’s do a little I told you so. This escalating of health care costs is a surprise to only those that wrote the legislation. Clear thinking Americans and experts knew this was going to happen years ago, the politicians either did not believe basic math or did not understand basic math.

In a May 27, 2013 post on Liberty News website,

http://www.libertynews.com/2013/03/obama-2009-premiums-to-drop-3000-sebelius-today-not-so-much-in-fact-theyre-going-to-rise/

the website owners went back through history and reviewed what the experts were saying about Obama Care a few years ago. You will see that the disaster we see unfolding today because of the legislation was fully predictable when the legislation first appeared and was enacted (bold and italics added by me for emphasis):

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I) In 2009, the Wall Street Journal determined:

“No Big Cost Rise in U.S. Premiums Is Seen in Study,” said the New York Times, while the Washington Post declared, “Senate Health Bill Gets a Boost.” The White House crowed that the CBO report was “more good news about what reform will mean for families struggling to keep up with skyrocketing premiums under the broken status quo.”

Finance Chairman Max Baucus [the same Max Baucus that now claims Obama Care is a “train wreck”] chimed in from the Senate floor that “Health-care reform is fundamentally about lowering health-care costs. Lowering costs is what health-care reform is designed to do, lowering costs; and it will achieve this objective.”

Except it won’t. CBO says it expects employer-sponsored insurance costs to remain roughly in line with the status quo, yet even this is a failure by Mr. Baucus’s and the White House’s own standards. Meanwhile, fixing the individual market—which is expensive and unstable largely because it does not enjoy the favorable tax treatment given to job-based coverage—was supposed to be the whole purpose of “reform.”

Instead, CBO is confirming that new coverage mandates will drive premiums higher.

II)  In 2010, Forbes determined:

If you’re thinking the legislation will tamp down overall health care spending, reconsider. Policy analysts ranging from the neutral Congressional Budget Office to the HMO lobby see no abatement in the growth rate of health care spending.

That sector of the economy is growing at a 7.4% annual rate, says actuarial firm Milliman. Medicare’s chief actuary, Richard Foster, thinks the Senate bill would expand health spending by $234 billion above current projections.

The premium hikes will result from cost shifting, better known as passing the buck.

III) In 2010, Reason magazine determined:

…contrary to what the administration and its supporters claim, under ObamaCare, insurance would probably get more expensive, and any decrease in rates for some would come at taxpayer expense.

Meanwhile, President Obama was telling people they would see a 3,000 percent drop in the cost of their premiums, and probably get a raise!

IV) Fast forward to today according to Liberty News:

Some people purchasing new insurance policies for themselves this fall could see premiums rise because of requirements in the health-care law, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told reporters Tuesday.

Ms. Sebelius’s remarks come weeks before insurers are expected to begin releasing rates for plans that start on Jan. 1, 2014, when key provisions of the health law kick in.

Premiums have been a sensitive subject for the Obama administration, which is counting on elements in the health law designed to increase competition among insurers to keep rates in check. The administration has pointed to subsidies that will be available for many lower-income Americans to help them with the cost of coverage

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“…could see premiums rise as a result of the health care law.” This was not supposed to happen folks but it took the Washington political class three years to see this disaster, as witnessed by the prime implementer of the legislation, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, whereas many Americans saw this happening as far back as 2009.

When you claim that something will reduce costs and then turn around and openly admit it will increase costs, there is no other word to describe your efforts than “Failure.”

2) Mike Ruff owns eight Five Guys burger franchises that employ 150 people, many of them full time employees. At a Heritage Foundation event in early March, this small business owner pointed out the likely impacts on his business and employees:

• The many added costs of the Obama Care legislation are going to have to be passed on to his customers in the form of higher food costs.
• He estimates that Obama Care will take the ENTIRE profit of one of his restaurants to pay for Obama Care‘s impact.
• He is also holding off on opening three new Five Guys franchises until the Obama Care regulations are fully understood and he understands if this can be done profitably.
• He may be forced to transition many of his full-time burger cooks and other employees to part time status if the health care insurance premiums become too onerous and unaffordable under Obama Care regulations.
• He estimates that additional healthcare insurance costs under Obamacare could total $60,000 annually for his small business.

Again, please explain to me how this legislation is helping America when it will escalate health care insurance costs, reduce hours for working Americans, cause many covered Americans to lose existing health insurance, and stunt economic growth?

The video where Mr. Ruff explains this reality can be accessed at:

http://www.bizpacreview.com/2013/03/12/five-guys-owner-burger-prices-will-go-up-due-to-obamacare-55197

3) Consider a different but similar story of a small business owner relative to Obama Care, as reported in the March 20, 2013 issue of the Washington Post:

• Jody Manor has operated a small cafe and catering company for nearly three decades in Old Town Alexandria.
• Six years ago he purchased an adjoining building, and recently he started searching for a second location for expansion.
• Whether he moves forward with expansion depends on the price tag of the health care insurance requirements mandated by Obama Care.
• Manor’s company employs 45 people. If he brings in just five more, his business would soon be subject to new minimum coverage standards under the 2010 law and he does not know whether his current health plan would meet this threshold of coverage or how his insurance premiums might skyrocket.
• “These changes are less than a year away, and I still have no information about how much our premiums are going to cost,” said Manor, owner of Bittersweet Catering, Cafe and Bakery. “It definitely gives me pause when thinking about adding another location.

Two different food businesses, same quandary. Bad legislation followed by bad planning which is causing so much uncertainty that businesses are stuck in nowhere land relative to understanding how to keep their business alive and profitable and not break the law. Federal government and political class, neither has a clue what is going on.

But the steady beat of stupidity and fiasco continues on tomorrow where we review even more of the disgrace, disaster, and disappointment that is Obama Care, possibly the worst piece of legislation ever written in the history of America. Hopefully, one more post will finally get all of the disgraces, disasters, and disappointments up to date, at least for now.

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